Betis eye Lopez swoop

By Mark Kendall

The 24-year-old is currently on a season-long loan at Lazio from Barcelona, but has emerged as Betis' number one transfer target.

Los Verdiblancos are keen to bring in another left back after Paolo Castellini suffered a major setback in his recovery from a knee ligament injury.

The Italian is unlikely to play again this term, leaving Luis Fernandez as the only fit left back at the Seville-based club.

Lopez joined Lazio last summer as a personal choice of then-coach Domenico Caso.

Caso has since left the club, and his replacement Guiseppe Papadopulo does not view the defender as a first-team regular.

Reports in Spain claim that Barcelona have consented to the player joining Betis if Lazio also agree to terminate his loan, and the player would be allowed to make a second loan move within one season as Uefa rules stipulate it is permitted if the player is moving back to his country of origin.